Public appearance by Kim Jong Un's daughter fuels speculation she will someday lead North Korea

20 February 2023

Kim Ju Ae, the pre-adolescent daughter of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, is believed to be around ten years old. But Jong Un is reportedly thinking long-term and is preparing for Ju Ae to take over as North Korea's leader someday.

Ju Ae, until recently, had only appeared in public with her father at government events. But Business Insider, Reuters and other publications are reporting that she attended a soccer game in Pyongyang, North Korea with her father on Friday, February 17.

According to Reuters' reporting on February 18, "The daughter, often described by state media as Kim's 'beloved child' or 'respected child,' has been seen alongside her father Kim at military events, including earlier this month. Little is known about the girl, and she has not been named in state media. South Korean intelligence officials believe she is the daughter identified as Ju Ae by former American basketball player Dennis Rodman, who spent time with Kim's family in 2013."

The Sejong Institute's Cheong Seong-Chang, who is considered an expert on North Korea's government, believes it is no coincidence that Ju Ae is now being seen in public more often.

In early February, Seong-Chang told the Washington Post, "Given these developments, there is no longer a question about whether Kim Ju Ae has been chosen as Kim Jong Un's successor."

Business Insider's Tom Porter, however, points out that according to other political analysts, Jong Un "may be using his daughter to signal how closely his family's future is bound up with the military and North Korea's nuclear arsenal."

North Korea is among the world's few remaining communist governments. Korea has been divided into two separate countries: non-communist South Korea (a democracy and long-time U.S. ally) and a communist dictatorship in the north.

North Korea has long been known for its hardline communist policies. During the 1950s and 1960s, North Korea’s Kim Il-Sung was a scathing critic of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and considered him much too moderate. After many years, considerable tensions remain between South Korea and North Korea. And North Korea's nuclear program is an ongoing concern to U.S. officials.

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